Water is vital for life. Because it is a resource common to all, it is everyone’s responsibility to make sure that water is used and managed wisely whilst maintaining the integrity of our water sources and the use of proper sanitation measures. Water has always been at the core of the Samoan ‘way of life’ and carries a strong symbolic value in our traditional culture. Our natural heritage is defined by water. The value of our lands is measured by it. More importantly water dictates growth and development in any country.Water is a social, economic and environmental good. As a resource it is finite and vulnerable. The transition from traditional subsistence living to a cash-based economy has resulted in a somewhat improved standard of living which together with a growing population and increasing development activities has put significant pressures and demands upon our limited water resources. These competing and sometimes opposing pressures and demands are difficult to manage, and it is precisely this reason coupled by the vulnerability of Samoa as a small and isolated island state, that we urgently need to act now before it is too late.

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